Resources (Geist)
1. Books From The Story-Teller's Library These are all books that you may ask me to bring to the game. You can borrow them for one week, to be returned at the next game. * Kwaidan - A collection of ghost-related folklore and legends from Japan. * The Body-Snatcher and Other Tales - Ghost fiction from Europe and the USA, from the early 1800s to present. * Encyclopedia of Ghosts & Hauntings - A sourcebook of general information on real-world hauntings and psychic phenomena. Take with a grain of salt, but excellent for inspiration. * Weird US, Weird Pennsylvania, Weird Pennsylvania II, and Weird New Jersey: Not specifically about ghosts or dead things, but just weird, creepy, or quirky things in the titular areas. They're really interesting reads even outside of LARP, but here, they're good for the various ghost stories, hauntings, witch tales, and local legends that could be used for inspiration. * YuYu Hakusho - A manga series about a guy who dies, but gets to make a deal to come back to life - as long as he works in the best interest of the Underworld. The first few volumes are pretty much Geist in a nutshell, even if the protagonist doesn't actually share his body with anyone. * Ghostwalk - Actually a D&D supplement, Ghostwalk presents a city where the dead and the living share the same space. Could be mined for inspiration, or for ideas on the Underworld. 2. World of Darkness Supplements These are not necessarily things I have access to, but may include material relevant to your character and allowed in-game. Many books have a number of merits that any character might qualify for, or include other information you may want to use. * Book of the Dead - The one-and-only supplement for the Geist game, this book includes a number of Underworld-related merits, as well as a new manifestation and the powerful Stygian Key (not available at character creation). Otherwise, it's a good supplement about the culture of the Underworld. * Armory and Armory: Reloaded - These books are excellent if you want your character to be good at combat. The first includes dozens of weapon and armor statistics, as well as general descriptions of them in-world, and a few new merits and fighting styles. The biggest draw ofReloaded is the chapter on fighting styles; there are more than a dozen new styles, plus some auxiliary merits, to make your character a unique combatant. * Second Sight: This book is about psychics and low-magic characters. While only certain parts of the magician section are relevant, in pop-culture these days psychic powers and ghostly phenomena go hand-in-hand. Definitely check the book out for the potential psychic powers - a good way to play a non-Bound and still keep up with the other characters. The most fitting character types are the Mediumist psychic and the Vodoun thaumaturge. * Asylum - The second chapter includes a lot of information on playing characters from a medical background, not to mention new derangements and an entire chapter on mental heath facilities - certainly thematic given how many abandoned asylums are said to be haunted. 3. Pre-Approved Merits Outside of the core book and the Geist books are dozens up dozens of merits. The majority of these merits will need to be passed with the storyteller for use in this game, but here you can find a list of pre-approved merits and their sources. * Armory: Armory allows a non-specific "pool" of weapons that your character can draw from. Higher dots allow for more and more powerful weapons, but all weapons must fall under a specific theme. Sin-Eaters with the industrial key often acquire an armory of old, outdated weapons.Source: Banishers, from the Mage: The Awakening line. * Luxury: Luxury allows your character to live with Resources 5, but for fewer dots. The drawback? That money isn't yours. Usually this merit is paired up with Allies or Mentor. Source: Seers of the Throne, from the Mage: The Awakening line. * Hypnotic Voice: This merit allows you to put other characters into a deep, meditative trance, using only your voice. Sin-Eaters can use this merit to help prod information out of victims of ghostly happenings. Source: Second Sight, page 66. * Well-Traveled: Your character has been all over the world, or has at least extensively studied other cultures online. You gain bonuses to remember information related to cultures outside your own, or to interact with people from such. This merit is good for the Sin-Eater who has studied death mythos the world over. Source: Reliquary, pg 85. * Heavy Hands: Heavy Hands grants your character a damage bonus on unarmed strikes, plain and simple. Source: Armory Reloaded, pg 98. * New Identity: While usually a Changeling option, this merit is also allowed in Geist; sometimes, a new chance at life means a new self - either by desire or necessity. Source: Changeling: The Lost, pg. 98 * Ghost Ally: Much like the regular ally merit, but the ally in question is one of the dead. The merit includes special rules for designing your ghost ally. Source: Second Sight, pg 65 * Socially Small: Exceptionally shy - or perhaps, just underestimatedly quiet - characters may take this merit. Source: Changing Breeds, pg 97 4. Visual Media This includes movies, TV, internet videos, and video games you can play to look for inspiration. * The Exorcist: The classic tale of possession. * Sixth Sense: Another classic tale of ghosts. * Ghost Busters: Not only one of my favorite movies, but pretty much a perfect example of how a game of Geist could be (albeit with some humorous overtones). * Corpse Bride: While your mileage may vary with the film itself, the visuals for the Underworld are about as accurate as it gets. * Welcome to Hoxford: The protagonist of the short film here (Warning: Blood and language) could be easily construed as a particularly deranged Sin-Eater (he can speak with the dead, shares a body with a strange entity, and at the end he starts what may be a Boneyard manifestation). Also, it is the best short film about an insane Sin-Eater fighting Pure werewolves you will probably ever see. * Fatal Frame: An old horror game where you try to take pictures of ghosts. It's a lot more terrifying than it sounds, trust me. * Okage / Shadow King: A game for the PS2 that I happen to own, Okage is the story of a teenager who shares his body with a powerful, spectral entity. Ghosts play a prominent role in the game, but be warned: the game is incredibly silly. * Paranorman: Norman's life is a great example for a sin-eater, and the witch is practically an unbound Geist. 5. Music There's plenty of music you could use to inspire you for Geist! This is just a short list of songs and artists to get you started - don't let it be the end! You'll never know what will influence your character. One of our players has devised her own list of Geist-appropriate music, themed to each of the Thresholds. You can find it at the bottom of the page here. Definitely check it out. As for the storyteller's recommendations, the main influences are blues, gospel, a little folk, and rockabilly. Also remember that Careless Whisper by Wham is a mandatory part of every roleplaying game soundtrack. Anyway: Consider Death's Got A Warrant by Patty Griffin, Bottom of the River by Delta Rae, Gin by Kelleigh McKenzie, Kingdom Come by The Civil Wars, Short Change Hero by The Heavy, Rain in the Valley by Steel Wheels,Kill of the Night by Gin Wigmore, Bang Bang by Willy Moon, (more to be added). --- Back to Geist ---